There is a question and answer meme going around Facebook where you sit down with your child to ask them some specific questions and write down their answers. Since we have 3 kids that can answer, I thought it would be fun to record what each one of them had to say. :) I did edit some of Zachary's answers because on several occasions he just kept going and going and going...and I'm sure I don't know where he gets that from!

1. What is something Mom always says to you?

L – Stop being mean!M – I love youZ – Zachary Jaren!

2. What makes Mom happy?

L – When I’m goodM – If I be obedientZ – Like if I give you a hug or a kiss

3. What makes Mom sad?

L – When I’m bad to youM – When I’m not obedientZ – Like if I do something bad, like step on your toe

4. How does your Mom make you laugh?

L – When you tickle meM – When I am funnyZ – by doing silly stuff (starts making faces)

5. What was your Mom like as a child?

L – happy?M – Did you live on a farm?Z – maybe you were like a yoyo and you could do tricks – your nick name was yoyo

Monday, March 30, 2009

If you are interested, Dave Ramsey will be hosting a "Town Hall for Hope"What is Town Hall for Hope?

Town Hall for Hope is your opportunity to sit down with people in your community for a nationwide town hall meeting led by Dave Ramsey. Thousands of venues across the country will host the event, broadcasting Dave's live presentation. In the opening half hour, Dave will offer straight talk about the economy, recession, foreclosures and more. He'll carefully explain where we've come from, where we are now, and what we should be doing with our money during this time. Then, Dave will spend an hour answering your questions live!Who is Dave Ramsey? Dave Ramsey is a personal money-management expert, an extremely popular national radio personality and best-selling author of The Total Money Makeover. In his latest book, a follow-up of his enormously successful New York Times best-sellers Financial Peace and More Than Enough, Ramsey exemplifies his life's work of teaching others how to be financially responsible, so they can acquire enough wealth to take care of loved ones, live prosperously into old age, and give generously to others.

Here's a little video clip about the meeting:

We're hoping to host the event at our local church, but you can check out the listings to see if there is one being hosted in your area too.

Friday, March 27, 2009

I've been blessed to be able to host several giveaways for you all, but this one is for a full year of Itty-Bitty Bookworm's preschool curriculum (a $300 value!!). Please read through this review to see how to enter to win!

Before deciding to be a stay-at-home mom and homeschooling, I was a preschool teacher. I know how much time and effort goes into planning a week's worth, let alone a year's worth, of curriculum in both the classroom setting and at home. I wish that I would have had Itty-Bitty Bookworm YEARS ago because it would have saved me so much time and energy! I have been 100% impressed with all that has been poured into this preschool curriculum and what it offers for both teachers and children.

Itty-Bitty Bookworm is a literature-based curriculum for preschoolers ages 18 months to 5 years ~ and everything you need is provided for you! The plans would work well in any teaching setting, from homeschooling, in-home daycares, or large school settings. It was developed by several early childhood educators and is extremely well-organized. The literature used as the base for the curriculum includes great books such as The Itsy-Bitsy Spider, The Wheels on the Bus, The Best Mouse Cookie, Silly Sally, The Gingerbread Man, and Mouse Paint.

Bailey's curriculum (ages 18 to 36 months) focuses on two different books each month and Bo's curriculum (ages 3 to 5) focuses on four books each month. The activities and projects for the lessons revolve around the stories that are being read with the children.

Each month of curriculum includes:

4 full weeks of lesson plans for a 5 day week

activity sheets/mini books

full-color clip art

learning center ideas

long term and short term objectives

morning meeting plans

poem pages

shared reading ideas

and so much more!

Just to give you an idea of how complete and thorough the plans are, the lesson plans for the month of February (Year 1, Bo's Curriculum) are 265 pages. The plans provide an abundance of craft ideas, games, rhymes, finger plays, printable books and activities. In addition, the curriculum provides supply lists, newsletters for parents, monthly objectives, milestones for children, daily report forms for children, and observation record sheets.

The lesson plans are laid out in a simple-to-follow format (you can see a pdf sample here) and you have the option of using as many or as few of the ideas as you want. The lessons are completely flexible. When we used them I was able to adapt different projects quickly to what we had on hand, but had the great framework that Itty-Bitty Bookworm provided.

If you'd like to see how we used the curriculum during our homeschool day, you can find pictures and more details in a few of my Preschool Corner posts: the letter S and the letter W.Itty-Bitty also has Bible Story Units that can be used a supplement to your curriculum or as part of a Sunday School curriculum. The Bible units include a verse coloring sheet, mini poster and 3 days of lesson plans along with other activity ideas. Tara, the founder of Itty-Bitty Bookworm, also has a blog, Raising Itty-Bitty Bookworms along with free resources for parents.

If you are interested in ordering Itty-Bitty Curriculum, you can choose to download a month of lesson plans ($20 each month) at a time or order a CD-rom ($25) of plans. Itty-Bitty also offers a 10% discount if you purchase a subscription of 3 months. Yearly subscriptions receive a 15% discount. You will get your money's worth out of this curriculum and will not be disappointed!

The Itty-Bitty Giveaway!!

The Itty-Bitty Bookworm has kindly offered to give one of my readers Year 1 of Bo's curriculum on CD. If you would like to enter to win this great curriculum, leave a comment here letting me know what you like most about this curriculum. The giveaway is open until Thursday, April 2nd at 8pm and I will announce the winner on Friday the 3rd. Please be sure to leave a way for me to contact you, otherwise I will draw another winner.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

For the next few days I'm going to try and avoid the computer. I'm SERIOUS. I might go through withdrawals for a few momentshours days , but four days will not kill me. Consider this my proclamation for all to read:

I can realistically say that I will not empty my nightstand. I may have high hopes, but unless I completely withdraw from life as we know it, the pile will merely decrease slightly. {grins)

I do know that I will finish at least TWO non-fiction books. Period. Since I am 'unplugging' the computer for an entire four days next week {please pick yourself up from the floor - I'm serious}, I am hoping to take a good chunk out of my pile. My reward is sitting by the pool in Puerto Rico {so help me if it is raining while we are there!}.

And in case you are interested, be sure to check out the spring reading chart that I made for my kids (a chart to track reading over the next few months).

___________________________________

In no particular order, here are the books that I will force myself would like to read this spring:

My non-fiction list: (yes, some of these have carried over from my fall reading list)

Finding Favor with the King by Tommy Tenney. I confess that I have already read a few chapters, which is why I KNOW that I will complete it this spring. Add to that that a friend and I are reading it together and that should help. I really love the book so far and it's one that I will re-read when I am done picking it apart because there is so much to process in it.

Shepherding a Child's Heart by Tedd Tripp. I hoping to read this one in the afternoons and also watch the DVD series that go along with it. Life has been too crazy, so even if my hubby can't do it along with me, perhaps I can glean some things from it.

Rivers of Grace by Mark and Patti Virkler. Another book recommended to me by a friend. Sadly, it's been sitting on my nightstand for over a year. The main premise of the book is raising your kids by the Spirit rather than the law.

Have a New Kid by Friday by Dr. Kevin Lehman. Well, the title certainly sounds lovely some days!

Grace Based Parenting by Dr. Tim Kimmel. I'm thinking the title just sounds lovely.

The Mentoring Mom: 11 Ways to Model Christ for Your Child by Jackie Kendall. A friend recommended this book to me and said she loved it - so here's hoping that I do to.

Bringing up Boys by Dr. James Dobson. Seeing as how I have two of them, this might hold some good inside information.

My fiction list:

The Lucky One by Nicholas Sparks. Only a few more of his books to read and these should be great for the plane and the pool!

A Bend in the Road by Nicholas Sparks. More plane/pool reading.

The Choice by Nicholas Sparks. Are you getting the 'mind candy' theme going here?....

Blue Shoes and Happiness and The Good Husband of Zebra Drive by Alexander McCall Smith. These are the last two (I think) that I need to read to catch up in this series. I don't know what it is about these books that I love, but somehow it gets lost in the translation when I try to explain it. The humor just cracks me up. {And yes, Erin, I will soon return the books!}

The Butterfly Farm by Diane Noble. I'm not sure where this book came from but I found it in my nightstand (don't worry, I checked for a library barcode - I'm safe). Since it's fiction, I'm sure I'll find the time to read it!

Twilight series by Stephanie Meyers. People keep telling me these books are great, so I have the first one to at least read...and more than likely get hooked on.

Kiss by Ted Dekker. It's been awhile since I've read a really good suspenseful book, now I'm just waiting on the library to get the book in for me.

Daisy Chain by Mary DeMuth. I've heard some great things about this book (ok, mainly from Katrina) and requested the library order it - hopefully they will.

___________________________________

I'm sure that there will be other books to that I pick up along the way too, but this is my list as it stands right now. I'm assuming that there will be one or two great books in the above lot that I'll have to share about with you all. I'm off to sort my piles and start packing some books for my trip!

Thursday, March 19, 2009

The first day of spring is tomorrow (March 20th) so our winter reading challenge with the kids is wraps up today. The last week has been so sweet watching the kids cram in those last minute books with each other. They cuddle up on the couch and systematically check off their number list they created to let me know how many they've read together..

Truthfully, they have probably read more than enough books and it's probably due to my lack of recording their reading - but I'm not complaining! They are happy and content - and quiet in general, and that is always a blessing!

They reminded me last week that I needed to make a spring one for them and it's posted below in case you are interested in using it with your kids.

I also have charts that I posted previously for the other three seasons too - you can check them out here.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

I'm often asked how I get our bread to look 'pretty' and not just a lumpy mass of dough. I finally remembered to take pictures of the easy steps that I use. It doesn't matter what size loaf I make, this works great for all my yeast bread recipes.

Monday, March 16, 2009

I've walked past Schleich Action Figures while perusing Target, but didn't have any personal experience with the company until recently when a little box showed up on my doorstep with a variety of animal figures inside: a tortoise, cow, pig, chicken, bear, and more!

Then my children started squealing, grabbed them all, and left me with nothing. But ever since they arrived one of our kids has been walking around with them every day. Now the animals go to bed with one child while another carry them around in her purse. Or the animals sit on the table and stare at me during meal times. I can say that I am becoming much more acquainted with the company.

"The design of our products is as realistic and naturalistic as possible. This enables children to experience the large variety of nature - from domestic animals on a farm to wild animals in the jungle."

If you haven't seen their figures before, let me just tell you they are beautiful and quality products! The ones that we received have even brought about some fun questions from our kids since they are {ahem}anatomically correct. Each piece that Schleich creates:

comes with the Schleich tag featuring the company's logo

is in compliance with all relevant safety regulations

is meticulously hand painted

features true-to-life modeling

Schleich carries a large variety of figures: humans, farm, jungle, wild and domestic animals and also imaginative play such as knights, smurfs, elves, American frontier and dinosaurs. We are so impressed with their products that we ordered this great piece for our boys. There will be some excited little boys in this house! {And a little p.s. to any grandparents reading this...we'll need some knights to go along with the castle!}.

Schleich's products are available from online retailers such as Amazon and locally at Target, Tractor Supply and smaller toy stores. Prices for the figures start under $2 and go up, depending on the item. Start making your lists - your kids will love them!

Click on the Homeschool Crew banner to read other reviews about this product.

Friday, March 13, 2009

I've pulled out a bunch of new recipes to try this month and one was for Pork BBQ sandwiches. It was simmering most of the day in the crock pot and I sneaked a little taste and then did a little tweaking, 'til I thought it was just right.

Overall, it is really easy...and that makes it one that I will use again in the future. Just throw everything in the crockpot and get ready for a tasty dinner! Looking at the picture below is making me think lunch tomorrow is going to be lovely too.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

~ To give you a little heads-up, this post topic is not one that you might expect from me. And it is one that might make you cry. It has been 'brewing' for quite some time and after a conversation with a friend today, I felt it was the time to share. ~

A little over five years ago, Rick and I lost a precious little member of our family, Aaron Matthew. We found out when I was 18 weeks pregnant that he had died in-utero and the next day I delivered him at the hospital. The rest of that day was spent holding him, grieving our loss and introducing him to the many friends who visited us and helped us in one of the most difficult times of our life.

Their presence and acknowledgment of his little life, no matter how brief it was, helped bring healing to our hearts in the days and weeks to come.

{Aaron's hand on Rick's fingertip}

With all that was on our minds at that time I'm not sure how the camera made it into our bag, but our brief time with Aaron was marked with many precious pictures to help us remember him. Over the years those pictures have come to mean so much to us, because even though we don't have our son with us we do have tangible proof of his life.

Recently I heard of a network of photographers (local and international) called Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep that exists to assist families suffering an early infant loss or who have children in hospice situations.

"Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation gently provides a helping hand and a healing heart. For families overcome by grief and pain, the idea of photographing their baby may not immediately occur to them. Offering gentle and beautiful photography services in a compassionate and sensitive manner is the heart of this organization. The soft, gentle heirloom photographs of these beautiful babies are an important part of the healing process. They allow families to honor and cherish their babies, and share the spirits of their lives."

To give you a little glimpse into how Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation works with families, here is a clip from the Today show:

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

~ Just a quick note - the links to this add-on are included in the body of this post. Click on the word and it will take you there!~

I've been using Mozilla's Firefox browser for a few months now and have to say that I am loving it. My web browser has quit crashing every 15 minutes and on the occasion that it does shut down, I am able to open up every little window that I had been browsing without digging through my internet history.

But there is one feature that I am LOVING from Firefox. It's a great little add-on called "Morning Coffee". I do follow blogs with Google reader but don't get on too often to check anymore using that because this is so much more convenient!

Opt on which day to add a site: MWF, TTh, every day, weekends only, etc...

All I have to do is click on the little coffee cup logo on my browser toolbar and the sites for that day automatically open up - each in their own little window. I don't have to dig through my bookmarks and I can easily/quickly add any new links that I find.

Kaleb is starting to string all sorts of words together...more than likely in an attempt to keep up with his talkative siblings and have his voice heard. The first few words he says might be understandable, but it can go downhill rather quickly, and then we sit there trying to figure out what he means.

Yesterday he sat at the table singing "Twinkle, Twinkle", but the words were running off on their own course, and any mom that has been forced blessed to listen to Dora a million times more than once might recall this little line that just cracks him up every time he sings it:

"Twinkle, twinkle little star, how I wonder....what you ate for breakfast."{this is where he gets the cutest little grin, scrunched up nose and just laughs at his own silliness}

______________________________

Zachary was waxing philosophical on the way home last night....

Z: Did you know Jesus is pretty smart? He put mud on a man's eyes and washed it off and he wasn't blind any more.

Me: How is that smart?

Z: Well, it was smart. He's just adorable. He's like a superhero - but without a cape. And He lives in Heaven.

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Think It Ink It Publishing provides story kits for children to write their own stories to professionally illustrated pictures. Their books provide only pictures that give a 'framework' for children to get their creative juices flowing and create a story that only they can tell using their imaginations. Each story is unique!

Our girls were thrilled beyond belief to get a creative story kit in the mail from Think It Ink It Publishing. Thrilled! After the package was ripped open (literally) we had to sit down immediately to look through the books and write their stories.

We received two creative writing story kits that each included 13 pages of wonderful illustrations for the girls to use as a launching pad for writing their own stories. Each kit also included:

a pencil

sticky note pad for rough drafts

creative writing tips

suggested vocabulary

Both of our girls jumped right into creating their own personal story. Words were flying so fast I had to pull out the laptop so I could type and keep up with all that they were saying. The illustrations gave them so many different options and choices on how to write their stories. They couldn't wait for me to copy what they wrote into their books. I was amazed at how much they wrote ~ and trust me, I have the hand cramps to prove how much they had to say!

Each story kit ($9.95) from Think It Ink It provides ample lines and room for your child (or you) to copy their story. They can first write it on the sticky notes provided with the kit and then write their final work onto the actual pages of the book. If you fall in love your child's masterpiece, you have the option of having the book made into a custom hardcover book ($29.95). It includes your child's name as the author, the story title, his/her photo, and a biography. You can also create a hardcover book online instead of using the initial story kit.

I am amazed at what these story kits brought out in our girls. They noticed details in the illustrations and weaved them into their stories. Several times they had to re-work their story lines because they realized things 'didn't make sense'. The story kits were almost as much for me as they were for them ~ watching the creativity flow was great! Most importantly though, they are so PROUD of what they created. They have been reading their stories over and over ~ and if you are interested in hearing them, there are several clips below of the girls reading their stories.

Think It Ink It has been generous in offering a FREE Creative Writing Story Kit for one lucky reader! All you need to do is check out their story kits and leave a comment here about which one you would choose for your child. The giveaway is open until Friday, March 13th at 8pm and I will announce the winner on Sunday the 15th. Please be sure to leave a way for me to contact you, otherwise I will draw another winner. If over 50 people enter, I will add an extra winner and two kits will be given away!

Thursday, March 5, 2009

I like a beef stew that is pretty thick and hearty. It's an added bonus that it is easy to pull together and makes the house smell oh.so.wonderful too! I've found that the crock pot is the best way to make the meat super tender and get full flavor from everything. And the 'secret' ingredient seems surprising, but it adds all the seasoning you need to make it very yummy.

I do have a few other shortcuts: frozen chopped onions (because chopping real ones makes me cry like a baby) and the canned potatoes, which do not get mushy at all ~ they stay just right. The majority of the time I just pull the meat right out of the freezer and cook it from frozen. The hardest part is peeling and cutting the carrots!

I am a mom to 4 children and wife to a wonderful man. We homeschool all four children, and my days are spent trying to keep up with them all…and the house…and life in general.

My passion is teaching my kids and helping other families in their homeschool journey. Working with children has always
been something I have enjoyed, and I love that the online world has provided a
way to share ideas and resources with other families all over the world. The last few years has brought speaking opportunities at blogging conferences, homeschool groups, and also homeschool conventions.